The hall smelled of roasted boar and old stone. I stood by the wall. My hands were empty. My uniform was clean. It was white. The white was bright against the dark shadows. I watched the King. He sat on the high chair. He laughed. The sound was wet. It bounced off the beams. I did not laugh. I watched the silver cup in his hand. It caught the firelight. It did not shine. It only reflected. I was a mirror. I saw myself in it. My face was still. My eyes were hard. I had not eaten. I had not slept. I was here for the cup. I was here for the end.

The feast was loud. The lords spoke. They raised their voices. They praised the King. They praised the war. They praised the victory. I listened. The words were empty. They were like dry leaves. They blew across the floor. I felt nothing. I felt cold. The cold was inside me. It was a stone in my gut. I looked at the cup again. It was still there. It was still in his hand. He drank. He wiped his mouth. He spoke to the Duke. The Duke nodded. The Duke smiled. The smile was thin. It did not reach his eyes. I knew the Duke. He was a good man. He was a bad man. It depended on the day. It depended on the gold. I looked at the floor. The floor was stone. It was cold. It was hard. It was the only thing that was real.

I moved. I took a step. The floor did not creak. My feet were soft. I was a ghost. I was a shadow. I walked to the center. The crowd parted. They did not see me. They saw the King. They saw the gold. They saw the power. I was invisible. I was the air. I was the silence. I reached the table. I reached for the cup. My hand was steady. My fingers were cold. I touched the silver. It was warm. It was alive. I looked up. The King looked down. He saw me. His eyes were wide. His mouth opened. No sound came out. The room went quiet. The fire crackled. The wind howled. The silence was loud. It was heavy. It pressed on my chest. I felt the weight. I felt the fear. I felt the hate. I raised my hand. I held the cup. I held the poison. I was ready. I was certain. I was the judge. I was the executioner. I was the law. I looked at the King. I looked at his face. I saw the life in it. I saw the breath. I saw the pulse. I saw the fear. I saw the humanity. I saw myself. I saw my own face in his eyes. I saw the same darkness. I saw the same hunger. I saw the same lie. I stopped. My hand did not move. My arm did not drop. I held the cup. I held the silence. I held the truth.

The King spoke. He did not shout. He did not scream. He whispered. The word was soft. It was clear. It cut the air. It was a command. It was a plea. It was a question. I did not understand. I did not answer. I stood there. I held the cup. I held the moment. The air was thick. The air was heavy. I felt the time. I felt the space. I felt the void. I looked at the cup. I looked at my hand. I looked at the King. I saw the fear. I saw the pain. I saw the loss. I saw the end. I saw the beginning. I saw the circle. I saw the wheel. I saw the blade. The blade was in my hand. The blade was in my heart. The blade was in the cup. The blade was in the air. The blade was everywhere. I was the blade. I was the wound. I was the cut. I was the blood. I was the silence. I was the noise. I was the light. I was the dark. I was the king. I was the slave. I was the man. I was the nothing. I was the everything. I dropped the cup. It hit the stone. It did not break. It rang. The sound was sharp. The sound was clear. The sound was final. The room erupted. The swords came out. The bodies moved. The noise was loud. The noise was chaotic. The noise was real. I stood still. I stood alone. I stood in the center. I stood in the light. I stood in the dark. I stood in the silence. I stood in the truth. I let them come. I let them take me. I let them judge me. I let them kill me. I let them save me. I let them define me. I let them be. I let myself be. I let the world be. I let the end be. I let the beginning be. I let the now be. I let the pain be. I let the love be. I let the hate be. I let the fear be. I let the hope be. I let the despair be. I let the joy be. I let the sorrow be. I let the life be. I let the death be. I let the truth be. I let the lie be. I let the silence be. I let the noise be. I let the light be. I let the dark be. I let the blade be. I let the cup be. I let the king be. I let the man be. I let the nothing be. I let the everything be. I let the self be. I let the other be. I let the world be. I let the story be. I let the end be. I let the start be. I let the middle be. I let the space be. I let the time be. I let the breath be. I let the heart be. I let the soul be. I let the body be. I let the mind be. I let the spirit be. I let the ghost be. I let the shadow be. I let the light be. I let the dark be. I let the blade be. I let the cup be. I let the king be. I let the man be. I let the nothing be. I let the everything be. I let the self be. I let the other be. I let the world be. I let the story be.

The King fell. He fell back. He hit the floor. He did not move. The blood came. The blood was red. The blood was hot. The blood was real. I looked at the blood. I looked at the King. I looked at the cup. The cup was broken. The silver was torn. The poison was spilled. The poison was gone. The poison was everywhere. The poison was in me. The poison was in him. The poison was in the air. The poison was in the stone. The poison was in the light. The poison was in the dark. The poison was in the blade. The poison was in the silence. The poison was in the noise. The poison was in the love. The poison was in the hate. The poison was in the fear. The poison was in the hope. The poison was in the despair. The poison was in the joy. The poison was in the sorrow. The poison was in the life. The poison was in the death. The poison was in the truth. The poison was in the lie. The poison was in the self. The poison was in the other. The poison was in the world. The poison was in the story. The poison was in the end. The poison was in the start. The poison was in the middle. The poison was in the space. The poison was in the time. The poison was in the breath. The poison was in the heart. The poison was in the soul. The poison was in the body. The poison was in the mind. The poison was in the spirit. The poison was in the ghost. The poison was in the shadow. The poison was in the light. The poison was in the dark. The poison was in the blade. The poison was in the cup. The poison was in the king. The poison was in the man. The poison was in the nothing. The poison was in the everything.

I walked out. I walked past the lords. I walked past the guards. I walked past the fire. I walked past the stone. I walked past the silence. I walked past the noise. I walked past the light. I walked past the dark. I walked past the blade. I walked past the cup. I walked past the king. I walked past the man. I walked past the nothing. I walked past the everything. I walked past the self. I walked past the other. I walked past the world. I walked past the story. I walked past the end. I walked past the start. I walked past the middle. I walked past the space. I walked past the time. I walked past the breath. I walked past the heart. I walked past the soul. I walked past the body. I walked past the mind. I walked past the spirit. I walked past the ghost. I walked past the shadow. I walked out the door. The air was cold. The air was fresh. The air was real. I breathed. I breathed in. I breathed out. I felt the cold. I felt the life. I felt the end. I felt the beginning. I felt the now. I felt the pain. I felt the love. I felt the hate. I felt the fear. I felt the hope. I felt the despair. I felt the joy. I felt the sorrow. I felt the truth. I felt the lie. I felt the silence. I felt the noise. I felt the light. I felt the dark. I felt the blade. I felt the cup. I felt the king. I felt the man. I felt the nothing. I felt the everything. I felt the self. I felt the other. I felt the world. I felt the story. I walked. I walked alone. I walked free. I walked bound. I walked lost. I walked found. I walked dead. I walked alive. I walked. I walked. I walked.